SS Zealandia
From Our Contribution
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| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | SS Zealandia |
| Owner | Huddart Parker & Co. Pty. Ltd., Melbourne |
| Builder | John Brown & Company, Clydebank. |
| Yard number | 392 |
| Launched | 28 Dec 1909 |
| Completed | 1910 |
| In service | 1910 |
| Out of service | 1942 |
| Fate | bombed & sank in Darwin harbour |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger / cargo |
| Tonnage | 6,683 tons |
| Length | 410.4 ft (125.07m) |
| Beam | 54.8 ft (16.66m) |
| Depth | 23.4 ft (7.11) |
| Propulsion | twin screw |
| Speed | 15 knots (27.78 km/h) |
| Capacity | 200 x 1st; 120 x 2nd; 126 x 3rd class + 130 crew |
Remarks
Built for the Huddard Parker Line. Chartered from 1910 - 1913 to the Union Ship Company of New Zealand, she served the trans-Tasman route. She served as a transport ship late in WW1 and in WW2 until she was sunk. Between wars she reverted to passenger duties on the Melbourne - Fremantle route.
During WW2 she transported Lark Force (2/22th Battalion) to Rabaul; Gull Force (2/21st Battalion) to Darwin; 8th Division main body to Singapore; and Sparrow Force to Timor. She was the last allied ship to see the HMAS Sydney before it was sunk of the WA coast.
During the Japanese air raid on Darwin on 19 Feb 1942, a number of bombs were near misses before one fell through a hatch and exploded in the hold causing a major fire. Japanese aircraft then strafed the ship with canon and machine gun fire with the result that ammunition began to explode and another bomb disabled her fire fighting equipment. Two crew perished and 142 survived. Sunk in the harbour her masts remained clear of the water. The ship was salvaged in 1960, although her remains are still a recreational dive site in 19 metres of water.
Soldiers carried
Darwin to Koepang, Timor 8 - 12 December 1941
Sparrow Force